Esther 1:1 Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this is Ahasuerus which reigned, from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty provinces:)
Faith is Resting in the Provision of God
To which world leader would you willingly entrust your entire destiny and life? Can you think of that person? Would he rule North Korea, France, or America? Many times we feel as if our lives are governed by fate, and that we can do nothing about it. Yet, faith is resting in the provision of God.
The Jews of Esther’s day probably felt as if they were at the mercy of factors they could not control. One factor they could not control was the power of the kingdom. The king of this empire was in the seat of power, Shushan, the palace. He was a man who called the very powers of the world empire his servants. He had glorious riches and honor. The Jewish people were subject to this king.
Another factor that the Jews could not control was the passions of this king. Verse 10 tells us that the King Ahasuerus was “merry with wine.” If you translate this into Tennessean, it means that this guy was as drunk as a skunk! If he had ever had good discernment, it was lost with the wine. Later, when things did not go his way, “his anger burned in him.” The Jews, along with the known world, were at the mercy of this king’s passions whether he was drunk or angry.
A third factor that the Jewish people could not control was the laws of the Medes and Persians. These unchangeable laws governed the lives of God’s people.
But above the power, passions, and laws that seem to govern our lives, there is God. God sees things from a satellite view, and He is in control.
Over what does God have control? First of all, God gives favor. Over and again in Esther 2, we read how God provided favor for Esther with the powers of the kingdom. Favor is God-given, so rest in the provision of God. You don’t need to work or manipulate people. You can trust God.
God gives position. Throughout history God has always had the most unlikely of people in positions of influence because He is the One Who reigns over this universe. God is in control no matter what position people may or may not have.
Finally, God is in control of timing. In the first two chapters of Esther’s story, we read of a number of disparate incidents and separate facts that seem to have no bearing one upon another whatsoever. But God was working all these things together to provide for His people, to preserve His people, and to provide the world with His Messiah. That is the nature of God.
Sometimes we refer to God or what He does as “Providence,” because that is what God does; He provides. Faith is resting in the provision of God. So, take action, but rest in Him as you do.